With a rich history in naval aviation, the F-14 Tomcat stands out among those few aircraft capable of commanding the great regard and admiration of both military personnel and the general public. This formidable fighter jet once again proved its mettle in real life-high stakes-presented by the harrowing incident in 1991 that brought into the fore durable design and exceptional level of skill possessed by the pilot thereof-immortalized by such Hollywood blockbusters as “Top Gun.”
The F-14 Tomcat was noted throughout its career for reaching near-unprecedented speeds of Mach 2.3 and serving the U.S. military through several theaters, from the skies over Vietnam to the conflicts in Libya and Iraq. However, the advanced capability is not always immune to in-flight emergencies, as illustrated by an incident that took place over the Persian Gulf involving an F-14 from the Ghost Riders squadron.
In 1991, above 8,000 meters of altitude, the F-14 suffered a malfunction in the nose cone due to a corroded locking mechanism that obliged the crew to land in emergency onboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, CVN-69. At the time, the thumbs on the stick belonged to LtCdr. Joe F. Edwards, remembers well the critical moments that preceded recovery in good condition. He said the locking mechanism of the radar dome, which was mounted beneath the fuselage, had corroded and fallen into the ocean. “Yeah, there was a locking mechanism at the 6 o’clock position underneath the fuselage on the F-14 where you lock the radome down … radome is radar dome … there’s a flat radar antenna back behind there, and the locking mechanism had corroded and actually fell out into the ocean.”
With all wings locked down and no flaps, Edwards and his crew had to jettison fuel to lighten the aircraft and reduce the approach airspeed. He said that he retained enough fuel to proceed toward Carswell in case the plan did not succeed. As they began their approach, the Commanding Officer transmitted that emergency vehicles were in position and Landing Signal Officers were ready for recovery.
“Luckily, all those approaches I practiced in the trainer helped me land the Tomcat exactly where I wanted and sure enough, it worked. My hook snagged the arrestment cable right at the maximum allowable speed and it operated as advertised even though I pulled every inch of available cable down the runway,” Edwards said.
From its maiden deployment in 1974, when it replaced the F-4 Phantom, to the very last combat sorties in 2006 over Afghanistan and Iraq, the F-14 Tomcat has remained an immortal airframe in U.S. military aviation lore. Its legacy was sealed not only by combat capability but also by the great tales of tenacity and skill exercised by its aviators.